According to the Oxford Dictionaries, interpersonal skills
is "the ability to communicate or interact well with other people".
This includes verbal and non-verbal communication, listening skills,
negotiation, problem-solving, etc — essentially all the different ways you
communicate and interact with the people you work with.
WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT?
One of the most basic and important soft skills to master,
interpersonal skills will help you in every single step of your career no
matter what industry you end up in. Being able to communicate effectively as
well as interpreting others' communication is highly valuable and will always
help you in your everyday working life and ensure that you will create great
social relationships.
Employers often ask for candidates with 'strong
interpersonal skills', and what they generally mean by that is that they want
those who are able to communicate and work well with others like colleagues,
clients or customers.
HOW DO I PICK UP THIS SOFT SKILL?
You probably already do this every day without thinking
about it! How do you interact with those around you? Some things you can do to
get better interpersonal skills are: Make sure you listen intently when others
speak
• Remember people's names when they are introduced to you
• Speak with
confidence and think twice before you do
• Try to be as sociable as possible; forging new friendships
is great practice
Once you have these skills down you will always be able to
use them to change both your professional and personal lives for the better.
